


Not So Bad

by ladybug721



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 01:40:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7146953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladybug721/pseuds/ladybug721
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I wrote this and posted it on tumblr a while back (right after Age of Ultron came out) but I just recently got an account here so I thought I should put it up! So if there are any continuity errors based on stuff in The Winter Soldier that's why.<br/>---<br/>Okay, here we go. First fanfiction writing ever. [hyperventilates nervously] Let me know what you think, if you like it, if you don’t, etc. </p>
<p>This is a BruceNat fanfic, post TWS pre AOU, Natasha’s point of view. Sort of the beginnings of their friendship with hints of something more later on… :)) okay. I wanted to write something that shows maybe the origin of the whole bar roleplaying thing from the film because I thought that was super cute! Anyway… I hope you like it!!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not So Bad

Natasha hadn’t been to Stark Tower since New York. Well, technically they were calling it the “Avengers” Tower now, but that didn’t mean the Avengers actually spent much – or any – time there. Okay, Banner spent a lot of time there, but that was because he and Tony were busy doing some science stuff she wasn’t particularly interested in, and Steve had visited a couple of times, and apparently even Clint dropped by occasionally between missions and going home to his family, but as far as she knew Thor hadn’t been there since New York either, so she wasn’t the only one being anti-social.

When Stark called to invite her to the party she hadn’t been planning on going. She listened to him ramble about old times, and catching up, and how now that S.H.I.E.L.D. was gone they needed to show the world that the Avengers would still protect them, but she had no intention of making an appearance until he said, “and then there’s the whole thing with Loki’s scepter.”

That definitely caught her interest. “Wait, what do you mean Loki’s scepter?”

“Come on, Romanoff, obviously Hydra has the scepter now, right? Now that S.H.I.E.L.D.’s gone, thanks to you – and I mean that sincerely, I never liked the idea of that Strategic Homeland… whatever – Hydra’s taken over any of their assets we haven’t been able to get our hands on, which would include the scepter. Thor’s here now, we’re making a plan to get it back.”

Okay, so Thor apparently had been to the Tower since New York. “You mean you’re planning to raid the Hydra bases.”

“Well not me, specifically. Technically I’m retired. But yeah, getting the team back together, avenging, like we do. You in?”

“Depends.” Natasha wasn’t overly thrilled about ‘getting the team back together.’ She liked Steve, and Clint obviously. Thor seemed all right, just a little weird, and Banner… she didn’t know how she felt about Banner. He was ridiculously smart, which was honestly a little intimidating, and she could never completely read the guy, which was incredibly frustrating. “Who all have you got to agree so far?”

“Oh you know, the usual suspects.” At her silence, he continued, “Thor, obviously, Steve, Clint,…”

“Clint?”

“Yeah, called him yesterday. Where is he? Wherever it is, there’s terrible reception.”

“Probably on a farm somewhere,” she said with a smirk.

“Hah, yeah fine, don’t tell me.” He waited a beat to see if she’d respond. When she didn’t, he continued, “So what do you think? Ready to join our ranks, Black Widow?”

“What about Banner? Is he in?” She didn’t know why it was so important to her to know whether Dr. Banner would be with them, but for some reason she really wanted him to be.

“Bruce… Bruce isn’t sure if he’d be more of an asset or a hindrance,” Tony replied after a short pause. “He’s willing to help with behind the scenes stuff, any tech we need, research, whatever, which is great. But I don’t know, I think we kinda need the Big Guy.”

“I agree,” Natasha surprised herself by responding. “We need him just as much as we need anybody else.”

“So does that mean… you’re in?” Stark must have been really desperate. It wasn’t like him to have a phone conversation that lasted this long, and he seemed to truly want her as part of the team. Always nice to be needed, she thought with a hint of bitterness.

“Yeah, I guess I’m in,” she said somewhat ruefully.

“Ok, awesome, but you gotta come to this party and use your womanly wiles or something to convince Banner we need the Jolly Green Giant. I swear, if I have to listen to him one more time talk about how he could hurt one of us or a civilian or, I don’t know, a plant…”

She gave a short laugh. “Based on the first time we met, I think he’s pretty immune to my ‘womanly wiles.’ But fine, I’ll be there. But this had better not be like the last party you threw.”

“First of all, that was definitely not the last party I threw, just the last one you happened to be invited to, and also, I was dying. So, get over it please.”

“See you on Friday,” she said, rolling her eyes as she hung up. Why the hell had she agreed to convince Banner they needed the Hulk? That should be the last thing she wanted. Besides, she could count on one hand the number of times they’d interacted, and not all of them had been pleasant. There was something about him, though, that she couldn’t help but like. Which was probably why she’d texted him after Sitwell said his name in a list of Hydra’s targets.

_Natasha: SHIELD’s compromised. You’re a possible target. Lay low and don’t flee the country or do anything stupid right now, I’m handling it._

_Bruce: Thanks for the heads up. Anything I can do?_

_Natasha: Nope. Don’t worry, big guy, I’ve got it covered ;)_

She figured giving him a warning was probably the least she could do, given that she was the one who’d dragged him back into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s radar in the first place. Under orders, yes, but still. He’d texted her again, after the shit hit the fan, a.k.a. after she’d put all of the S.H.I.E.L.D. secrets on the World Wide Web.

_Bruce: Wow. So I guess you handled it?_

_Natasha: Told you I had it covered._

As an afterthought, she’d texted him one more time a few minutes later.

_Natasha: Don’t hate me after you read about all the shit I’ve done._

_Bruce: I could never hate you, Miss Romanoff._

For some reason, she really appreciated the fact that he called her “Miss” instead of “Agent.” She wasn’t an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. anymore, and if he had called her “Agent Romanoff” she would’ve felt obligated to correct him. But he seemed to anticipate that. He was smart. And thoughtful. And she felt like a stupid teenage girl, analyzing a text from a boy.

And that is how she ended up at a party in the Avengers Tower in New York City.

“Stark. This is quite the party.” It was loud and there were lots of people. She recognized most of them, but in her line of work she was sort of required to know people’s faces.

Tony turned around when he heard her voice. “Romanoff! You came! Kinda didn’t think you would… But I’m glad you’re here, make yourself at home, get a drink, mingle.”

Natasha shrugged, “I’m not much for mingling. I’ll get a drink though.”

He gestured toward the end of the room. “Bar’s that way. Gotta go, I’m busy hosting.” He disappeared into the crowd, leaving Natasha alone by the entrance.

She wasn’t used to feeling out of place. She could easily slip into any role, assume an appropriate identity for any occasion. The problem was she no longer knew exactly which identity to assume. S.H.I.E.L.D. was gone, and with it the security she once had; she now had to figure out a way to be Natasha Romanoff without exactly knowing who Natasha Romanoff was. Shit, she was contemplating her identity at a party for God’s sake. She really needed a drink.

“Nat!” So Clint was here. He made his way through the crowd, knocking into a few people before he reached her.

“Shouldn’t you be on the farm? Fixing the shed or something?”

He laughed. “Yeah, that shed’s never gonna be fixed. Stark called. Said something about bringing the team together. Apparently there’s all these Hydra bases and Loki’s scepter’s stashed away in one of ‘em. That’s why Thor’s here.” She heard his booming voice as he talked to his tiny girlfriend across the room.

“Yeah, Stark called me too. I was sort of surprised I never heard from you, though.”

“Wanted to give you the chance to decide for yourself. Honestly, you’ve done enough, Nat, there’s no reason for you to do anything more unless you want to,” he said with a note of concern in his voice. She gave him a small smile. She’d never had an older brother (at least not one she could remember) but Clint filled the role pretty well.

“Seriously, Clint, don’t worry about me. I’m an Avenger, remember? Now I gotta go, Stark told me to mingle,” she said with an eye-roll before gliding off. She didn’t particularly enjoy parties – the crowds, the noise, the forced small talk – and she desperately needed a drink.

As she made her way across the room she caught sight of Steve having what looked like a serious conversation with Bruce Banner. Banner’s back was toward her, but she recognized his dark curls and his awkward, guarded demeanor. He was dressed well – not the rumpled suit he’d been wearing when they first met – and his dark curls were combed, though she thought she liked them better messy. She suddenly felt a little nervous; she hadn’t spoken to him since their last texting exchange and, despite what he said, she was worried about what he thought of her. She decided immediately that now would not be the time to discuss the Hulk. They could talk about that later; it was not a topic of conversation suitable for a party. She took a breath then walked toward the two men.

“Hey fellas,” she said with a grin. “Either one of you know where Stark keeps the good booze?”

“Tony keeps that locked away,” Bruce said with a grin.

She smirked and rolled her eyes. “Of course he does. What do you think, Steve, good party?”

“Yeah, it’s… fun.” He looked almost as out of place as Natasha felt.

“I guess this is pretty different than what you’re used to, coming from the 1940s. Actually, it’s pretty different from anything I’m used to,” Banner joked sympathetically. Natasha had forgotten that she liked his sense of humor. It was dry and intelligent, and a little self-deprecating.

Steve seemed to notice something across the room. Natasha turned and saw that his gaze was captured on Sharon Carter, the S.H.I.E.L.D. turned CIA agent. “You ever ask out that nurse, Rogers?”

“She’s not a nurse, and… no. Not yet. I mean, I don’t know if I will, it’s all a little… complicated.”

“Don’t be a baby, go talk to the pretty girl.” She shoved him playfully in that direction. “Go on, we’ll be here if you need us.” Steve grinned and approached the other woman shyly. “I wonder if I’ll get to be in the wedding,” Natasha wondered aloud.

Bruce laughed. “Maid of Honor or Best Man?”

“Best Man. Definitely.” She slid behind the bar and affected an old-timey, western-movie accent. “What’s your poison, Mister?” She didn’t know exactly what had possessed her to tease Bruce Banner, but there it was.

He looked down, probably trying not to laugh, then leaned across the bar and said, “How’d a nice girl like you wind up working in a dump like this?”

She smiled, surprised. He had gone along wither her role-play and was rather charming. “Oh, same old story.” She sighed dramatically. “Fella done me wrong.”

“You got lousy taste in men, kid,” he responded, shaking his head with a playful grin.

She smirked in response. “You didn’t answer my question. Pick a drink, Mister.” She gestured to the wide variety of liquor bottles lining the shelves behind her.

“Alright, missy, make me the best drink you got,” he replied with a shrug.

“You got it, Doc.” She busied herself trying to make something resembling a martini, although, truth be told, she didn’t know exactly what she was doing. Of all the jobs she’d been required to masquerade in, bartending had never been one of them.

“By the way,” he said, now in his normal voice, “thank you for letting me know. About S.H.I.E.L.D. I appreciate that.”

“Oh,” she was a little surprised. She wasn’t used to being thanked. “Yeah, of course. I figured I owed you.”

“Well, now we’re even?” It was more of a question than a statement.

“Now we’re even.” She handed him a martini glass with a liquid that had somehow turned out pink.

He tried it, then coughed and put the glass down. “Wow, that is really terrible.”

“Yeah I thought it might be…” she said with a smirk. “I’m really terrible at making drinks.”

“You probably could have led with that.” But he was smiling, so she thought maybe he didn’t really mind.

“Okay, so now I guess I owe you again,” she said quietly with a small smile dancing on her lips.

“I guess you do,” he responded.

She liked his smile. It was sad but nice, like him, she supposed. “Hey, so this is a little weird, but Steve recently asked me in a very straightforward, Steve-like way for me to be his friend. I don’t have a lot of those, and I’m not sure that I’m good at it, but… I’d really like to be yours, if you want.” She didn’t know why it was so important to her, but for some reason she really wanted to be friends with the brilliant, awkward, charming scientist standing in front of her.

He nodded and said, “Yeah, that sounds like Steve. He did the same thing with me, right after the whole New York incident.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” she began, then, “Wait, Steve asked you to be his friend right after New York?”

“Yeah.”

“Seriously? Why did he wait so long to want to be friends with me?”

“Maybe I make a better first impression than you.”

“Banner!” she said, exasperated. But she was smiling.

He returned her smile. “Miss Romanoff, of course I’d like to be your friend.”

Her smile broadened then disappeared. “Okay, that’s good,” she said in a businesslike tone. “But if we’re friends you have to call me Natasha.”

“Okay.”

“And I have to call you Bruce.”

“Of course.”

“Good.” She felt the smile returning to her face so she looked down to keep him from noticing. “Why don’t I get you a beer so that you don’t have to drink the gross thing I made?”

“Thanks, Natasha,” and she somehow knew he meant for more than just the beer. She looked up slowly so she could see his face, and she couldn’t keep that small, open smile she reserved for only certain people from dancing on her lips. She decided maybe parties weren’t so bad after all.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Be nice, I just wrote this for fun one afternoon. But if you liked it let me know! :)


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